Light emitting device

ABSTRACT

A light emitting device includes a plurality of light emitting elements, a light transmissive member, a first member and a second member. Each of the light emitting elements has a pair of electrodes on a lower surface thereof. The light-transmissive member is disposed on an upper surface of each of the light emitting elements to transmit light from the light emitting elements. The first member is disposed on one or more lateral surfaces of the light-transmissive member and constitutes part of an upper surface of the light emitting device. The second member surrounds an outer periphery of each of the light emitting elements and constitutes part of a lower surface of the light emitting device. Lower surfaces of the electrodes are exposed from the second member.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to Japanese Patent Application No.2015-252881 filed on Dec. 25, 2015. The entire disclosure of JapanesePatent Application No. 2015-252881 is hereby incorporated herein byreference.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates to a light emitting device.

A semiconductor light emitting device has a red light emitting element,a blue light emitting element, and a green light emitting elementmounted in the recess of a package (for example, Japanese UnexaminedPatent Publication No. 2009-188201) has been proposed. This allows asingle semiconductor light emitting device to emit various colors oflight.

SUMMARY

A light emitting device according to one embodiment of the presentdisclosure includes a plurality of light emitting elements, a lighttransmissive-member, a first member and a second member. Each of thelight emitting elements has a pair of electrodes on a lower surfacethereof. The light-transmissive member is disposed on an upper surfaceof each of the light emitting elements to transmit light from the lightemitting elements. The first member is disposed on one or more lateralsurfaces of the light-transmissive member and constitutes part of anupper surface of the light emitting device. The second member surroundsan outer periphery of each of the light emitting elements andconstitutes part of a lower surface of the light emitting device. Lowersurfaces of the electrodes are exposed from the second member.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of the light emitting device accordingto Embodiment 1;

FIG. 2 is a schematic bottom view of the light emitting device accordingto Embodiment 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross sectional view along the A-A line in FIG. 1of the light emitting device according to Embodiment 1;

FIG. 4 is a schematic plan view of the light emitting device accordingto Embodiment 2;

FIG. 5 is a schematic cross sectional view of the light emitting deviceaccording to Embodiment 2; and

FIG. 6 is a schematic cross sectional view of the light emitting deviceaccording to Embodiment 3.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described throughreference to the drawings. In the following description, terms will beused that indicate a particular direction or position, as needed (forinstance, terms such as “upper” and “lower,” and other terms thatinclude these terms). The use of these terms is intended to facilitatean understanding of the invention through reference to the drawings, andthe technological scope of the present invention is not limited to or bythe meaning of these terms. Also, portions that are numbered the same intwo or more drawings indicate the same portions or members.

With a light emitting device equipped with a plurality of light emittingelements, when one of the light emitting elements is lit independently,the light may be absorbed by the other light emitting elements, whichmay decrease the light extraction efficiency.

It is an object of the certain embodiments of the present disclosure toprovide a light emitting device with a higher light extractionefficiency.

Light Emitting Device According to Embodiment 1

The light emitting device 100 according to Embodiment 1 shown in FIGS.1, 2, and 3 includes a plurality of light emitting elements 11, 12, 13each having different emission wavelengths, a light-transmissive member20 disposed on the upper surfaces of these light emitting elements 11,12, 13, a first member 30 provided on the lateral surfaces of thelight-transmissive member 20, and a second member 40 provided so as tosurround the outer periphery of the light emitting elements 11, 12, 13.Each of the light emitting elements 11, 12, 13 has a pair of electrodeson its lower surface, and the lower surfaces of these electrodes areexposed from the second member 40 to make an electrical connection withthe outside.

With the light emitting device 100 configured in this way, since thesecond member 40 surrounds the outer periphery of the light emittingelements 11, 12, 13, when the light emitting elements 11, 12, 13 are litindividually, the absorption of light by adjacent light emittingelements can be reduced, so a light emitting device 100 with high lightextraction efficiency can be obtained.

Light Emitting Elements

For the light emitting elements, light emitting diodes are preferablyused. Two or more of the light emitting elements are included, and thetwo or more light emitting elements have different emission wavelengths.

The light emitting device 100 according to Embodiment 1 includes aplurality of light emitting elements 11, 12, 13. The light emittingelements 11, 12, 13 are selected so that they each have a differentwavelength emission. For example, a combination of three types of lightemitting element that emit red, green, and blue light is preferably usedfor a light emitting device that is used in a full-color display device,as this may afford better color reproduction in the display device.

The light emitting diodes in which a stacked structure having a lightemitting layer on the light-transmissive substrate can be used for thelight emitting elements. Examples of the semiconductor material includeZnSe, nitride-based semiconductor (In_(x)Al_(y)Ga_(1-x)._(y)N, 0 <X, 0<Y, X+Y≦1), GaP for the light emitting element emitting light of blue(emission wavelength 430 nm to 490 nm) or green (emission wavelength 495nm to 570 nm), GaAlAs, AlInGaP for the light emitting element emittinglight of red (emission wavelength 610 nm to 750 nm). Thelight-transmissive substrate can employ a light-transmissive insulatingmaterial such as sapphire (Al₂O₃), and a semiconductor material that cantransmit light emitted from the semiconductor stacked body (e.g., anitride based semiconductor material).

The light emitting elements include, for example, a light-transmissivesubstrate that is located on the emission surface side, and asemiconductor stacked body that is provided to the surface on theopposite side from the light-transmissive substrate, and a pair ofelectrodes (an n-side electrode and a p-side electrode) is formed on thesurface of the semiconductor stacked body. The semiconductor stackedbody includes, for example, an n-type semiconductor layer and a p-typesemiconductor layer. One of the pair of electrodes is connected toeither the n-type semiconductor layer or the p-type semiconductor layer,and the other electrode is connected to the other of the n-typesemiconductor layer and a p-type semiconductor layer.

A good conductor can be used for the pair of electrodes of the lightemitting elements. For example, a single-layer film of gold, copper,nickel, or silver or an alloy of these can be used, or a multilayer filmof these can be used. Each pair of electrodes is exposed from the secondmember for electrical connection with the outside. This allows the lightemitting elements to be driven individually.

The size and shape of the light emitting elements in plan view arepreferably about the same. Also, the light emitting elements arepreferably disposed so as to be substantially quadrangular as a whole inplan view. This allows all of the light emitting elements together to becovered by a quadrangular light-transmissive member.

In the case that the light emitting elements have various sizes andshapes in plan view, the light emitting elements disposed on a lowersurface of the light-transmissive member can each be positioned in aregion which is equally divided into the number of the light emittingelements, thereby improving an uniformity of chromaticity distributionon the light output surface of the light emitting device.

Light-transmissive Member

With the light emitting device 100 in Embodiment 1, thelight-transmissive member 20 is provided so that the lower surface ofthe light-transmissive member 20 faces the emission surfaces of thelight emitting elements, and covers these emission surfaces. With thisarrangement, the light emitted by the light emitting elements istransmitted by the light-transmissive member 20 and emitted to theoutside. With the light emitting device 100 in Embodiment 1, thelight-transmissive member 20 is preferably provided so as to cover theentire emission surfaces of the light emitting elements, and morepreferably is provided so as to cover the entire emission surfaces ofthe light emitting elements and so that the outer peripheral surface ofthe light-transmissive member 20 is located to the outside of thelateral surfaces of the light emitting elements, as shown in FIGS. 1 and3. The upper surface of the light-transmissive member 20 constitutespart of the upper surface of the light emitting device 100, as the lightoutput surface of the light emitting device 100.

With the light emitting device in Embodiment 1, the light-transmissivemember 20 may have one or more grooves or one or more projections on itslower surface. The grooves or projections are provided at locationsbetween the light emitting elements. In other words, the lower surfaceof the light-transmissive member 20 is divided up into a plurality ofregions by these grooves or projections, and the light emitting elementsare disposed in these regions respectively. The outer edges of theregions may be surrounded by the grooves or projections. When the lowersurface of the light-transmissive member 20 has these grooves orprojections, the wet spreading of the uncured adhesive material used tojoin the light-transmissive member 20 and the light emitting elementswith an adhesive material 50 (discussed below) can be stopped by thegrooves or projections. Also, the adhesive material may afford aself-aligning effect that allows the light emitting elements to bedisposed precisely at the desired locations.

The cross sectional shape of the grooves or projections may, forexample, be rectangular, triangular, semicircular, trapezoidal, or acombination of these shapes.

The light-transmissive member has light-transmissive properties. Theterm light-transmissive as used in the present specification refers to amaterial that transmits at least 50% of visible light in a state inwhich the light-transmissive member is disposed in the light emittingdevice. More specifically, the light-transmissive member preferablytransmits at least 70% of the light from the light emitting elements,and more preferably at least 80%. This allows the light emitted from thelight emitting elements to be taken off to the outside more efficiently.

Examples of such a material include a molded article made of a siliconeresin, a modified silicone resin, an epoxy resin, a modified epoxyresin, a phenol resin, a polycarbonate resin, an acrylic resin, atrimethylpentene resin, a polynorbornene resin, or a hybrid resincontaining one or more of these resins. It is particularly preferable touse a silicone resin with good resistance to weather and heat. A glasssilicate, a glass borosilicate, quartz glass, or another such glassmaterial, or sapphire or another such inorganic material can also beused.

As long as it is light-transmissive, the light-transmissive member maycontain various kinds of light diffusion materials, light reflectingmaterials, dyes or pigments as colorants, and other additives, either inits interior or on its surface. Examples of the light-reflectingmaterial include titanium oxide, silicon oxide, zirconium oxide,potassium titanate, alumina, aluminum nitride, magnesium oxide, boronnitride, mullite, niobium oxide and various rare earth oxides (e.g.,yttrium oxide, gadolinium oxide). Examples of the light diffusionmaterial includes calcium carbonate, aluminum oxide, barium sulfate,titanium oxide, aluminum oxide and silicon oxide. Examples of thecolorant include carbon black, chromium oxide, manganese dioxide andiron oxide. Examples of the additive include glass fibers, fibrousfillers such as wollastonite, carbon, and inorganic fillers such assilicon oxide. These materials can be contained in an amount of about 5to about 50 wt % with respect to the total weight of the molded resin.

Any shape of the light transmissive member can be used. In order toextract the light emitted from the light emitting elements, the lowersurface of the light transmissive member preferably has a larger surfacearea than the upper surfaces of the light emitting elements, so that thelight emitting element upper surfaces can be entirely covered by thelight-transmissive member. The thickness of the light-transmissivemember can be, for example, about 20 μm to about 500 μm, however, it canbe appropriately altered.

First Member

The first member is used to hold the light-transmissive member and toreduce the leakage of light from the lateral surfaces of thelight-transmissive member.

The first member constitutes the surface of the light emitting device100, and as such may be exposed to the external environment, so it ispreferable to use a molded resin with high strength and good weatherresistance, or high gas barrier properties. Also, to improve thecontrast of the light emitting device, it is preferable to use amaterial with low reflectivity with respect to sunlight and otherexternal light, and one that is black or a color similar to black ispreferable.

With the light emitting device in Embodiment 1, the first member 30 isprovided around the light-transmissive member 20, and preferablycontacting with the light-transmissive member 20, it may reduce theleakage of light from the lateral surfaces of the light-transmissivemember 20, and can hold the light-transmissive member 20. The firstmember 30 is preferably disposed contacting with the entire lateralsurfaces of the light-transmissive member 20. Also, the lower surface ofthe first member 30 is preferably disposed lower than the lower surfaceof the light-transmissive member 20, or substantially flush with thelower surface of the light-transmissive member 20. This allows theleakage of light from the lateral surfaces of the light-transmissivemember 20 to be effectively reduced, and the light-transmissive member20 to be held securely.

With the light emitting device in Embodiment 1, the surface of the firstmember 30 constitutes part of the upper surface of the light emittingdevice 100, and surrounds the light output surface of the light emittingdevice 100 (the upper surface of the light-transmissive member 20). Theupper surface of the first member 30 is preferably substantially flushwith the upper surface of the light-transmissive member 20. This canclearly define a boundary between the light output surface configuredwith the upper surface of the light-transmissive member 20, and thenon-emission surface configured with the upper surface of the firstmember 30 at the upper surface of the light emitting device.

The first member 30 can be made from a resin containing a lightabsorbing substance. Examples of the resin material include siliconeresin, epoxy resin, silicone-modified resins, epoxy-modified resin,polyimide resin, modified polyimide resin, polyphthalamide (PPA),polycarbonate, polyphenylene sulfide (PPS), unsaturated polyester,liquid crystal polymer (LCP), ABS resins, phenol resins, acrylic resinsand PBT resins.

Examples of light absorbing substances include black pigments and carbonblack. A light reflecting substance may also be used in addition to thelight absorbing substance. Examples of the light reflecting substanceinclude titanium oxide, silicon oxide, zirconium oxide, potassiumtitanate, alumina, aluminum nitride, boron nitride and mullite. The typeand amount of the light absorbing substance, light reflecting substancecan be adjusted as needed, as dictated by the type of light absorbingsubstance and light reflecting substance being used.

The thickness of the first member (that is, the height from the uppersurface to the lower surface of the first member) is preferably equal toor greater than the thickness of the light-transmissive member 20. Also,the thickness of the first member at the lateral surfaces of the lightemitting device 100 is preferably greater than the thickness of thesecond member. In other words, at least half of the height of thelateral surfaces of the light emitting device 100 is preferablyconstituted by the first member. Further, the first member preferablyconstitutes part of a lateral surface of the light emitting device. Withthis arrangement, in the case that the light emitting device 100 is usedfor the pixels of an outdoor image display device, for example, thelateral surfaces of the light emitting device 100 may be covered by awaterproof resin, but the greater the proportion of the lateral surfacesof the light emitting device accounted for by the first member is, thegreater the distance between the waterproof resin surface and theboundary between the first member and second member is. This can make itless likely that moisture will come in through the boundary between thefirst member and second member. The phrase “the lateral surfaces of thelight emitting device 100” here refers to the lateral surfaces locatedbetween the upper surface and lower surface of the light emitting device100.

With the light emitting device according to Embodiment 1, an epoxy resinthat has been colored black is used as the first member. Epoxy resinshave good resistance to water and heat, and have good electricalinsulation properties, so they are suitable as the material that makesup the surface of the light emitting device 100.

Second Member

The second member 40 is used to hold the light emitting elements and toreduce the absorption of the light emitted from the light emittingelements by adjacent one or more light emitting elements.

With the light emitting device in Embodiment 1, the second member 40 isdisposed so as to cover the light emitting elements. The second member40 is preferably contacting with the lateral surfaces of each of thelight emitting elements in between adjacent elements. This may reducethe absorption of light by adjacent light emitting elements when thelight emitting elements are lit individually, which may give the lightemitting device 100 high light extraction efficiency.

The second member 40 is provided to the lower surfaces of the lightemitting elements, and constitutes the lower surface of the lightemitting device 100. Therefore, it is preferable for a member with lowtransmission of the light from the light emitting elements to be used asthe second member 40. Also, since the second member 40 covers thelateral surfaces of the light emitting elements, when the lightutilization efficiency of the elements is taken into account, it ispreferable to use a member with high reflectivity. More specifically,the second member 40 is preferably white or a color similar to white,and more preferably has an optical transmissivity of at least 80%.

The pairs of electrodes of the light emitting elements 11, 12, 13 areexposed at their surface from the second member 40 for the purpose ofconnection with the outside. That is, the second member 40 may have athickness equal to the height of the pair of electrodes on each of thelight emitting elements 11, 12, 13. In the case that the second member40 is too thin, light may leak out from the lower surface of the lightemitting device 100. Therefore, light leakage from the lower surface ofthe light emitting device 100 can be reduced by setting the height ofthe electrodes of the light emitting elements to at least 20 μm.

A member that is softer than the first member is preferably used for thesecond member. Since the first member makes up part of the upper surfaceof the light emitting device, it is preferably high in strength, butsince the second member is preferably disposed near the light emittingelements, it is preferable to use a material that is flexible withrespect to heat and is resistant to thermal expansion, so that the lightemitting elements may not be subjected to excessive stress due tothermal expansion. More specifically, when a resin material is used forthe second member, for example, it preferably has a Young's modulus ofabout 10 MPa to 10 GPa.

The second member 40 is provided on the lower surface side of the firstmember 30. The second member 40 may have another member interposedbetween itself and the first member 30, but preferably at least thefirst member and the second member are in contact at the lateralsurfaces of the light emitting device 100. That is, the second memberpreferably constitutes part of a lateral surface of the light emittingdevice. This allows a path by which light leakage or intrusion ofmoisture and so forth between the various members at the lateralsurfaces of the light emitting device 100 to be small.

The second member 40 can be made from a resin containing a lightreflecting substance. Examples of the resin material include siliconeresin, modified silicone resin, epoxy resin, modified epoxy resin, it ispossible to use a resin such as acrylic resin, also hybrid resincontaining these resins one or more, and particularly the silicone resingood in weather resistance and heat resistance can be preferably used.

Examples of the light reflecting substance include titanium oxide,silicon oxide, zirconium oxide, potassium titanate, alumina, aluminumnitride, boron nitride and mullite. This light reflecting substance canbe in the form of particles, fibers, flakes, or the like.

The second member may contain a light absorbing substance in order toimprove the contrast of the light emitting device. Examples of lightabsorbing substances include black pigments and carbon black.

With the light emitting device 100 according to Embodiment 1, aphenylsilicone resin that has been colored white is used as the secondmember. Phenylsilicone resins have high strength and good weatherresistance.

Adhesive Material

The upper surfaces of the light emitting element and the lower surfaceof the light-transmissive member can be joined with a light-transmissiveadhesive material 50. The adhesive material 50 may cover the uppersurfaces of the light emitting elements and the lower surface of thelight-transmissive member. The adhesive material 50 may also cover partof or all of the lateral surfaces of the light emitting elements. Theouter surface of the adhesive material in this case preferably coversthe lateral surfaces of the light emitting elements so as to be inclinedoutward from the lower surface side toward the upper surface side of thelight emitting elements. When the lateral surfaces of the light emittingelements are covered with the light-transmissive adhesive material 50,the outer surface of the adhesive material may have a inclined surfacethat is inclined outward from the lower surface side of the lightemitting elements toward the upper surface side, and the second member40 may cover this inclined surface and the part of the lateral surfacesof the light emitting elements exposed from the adhesive material. Withthis arrangement, light from the light emitting element lateral surfacesmay be reflected at the interface between the second member 40 and theadhesive material 50 and may be guided toward the light-transmissivemember.

A light-transmissive resin can be used for the adhesive material 50. Inparticular, the light-transmissive resin can be a silicone resin, asilicone-modified resin, an epoxy resin, a phenol resin, or another suchthermosetting resin. Also, the light-transmissive resin may besusceptible to the effect of heat generated when the light emittingelements are lit when the light-transmissive resin comes into contactwith the lateral surfaces of the light emitting elements. In thisrespect, a thermosetting resin is preferable to be used as thelight-transmissive resin because of its good heat resistance.

Light Emitting Device According to Embodiment 2

The light emitting device 200 according to Embodiment 2 shown in FIGS. 4and 5 includes a plurality of light emitting elements 11, 12, 13 withdifferent emission wavelengths, a plurality of light-transmissivemembers 20 disposed on the upper surfaces of these light emittingelements 11, 12, 13, respectively, a first member 30 disposed on thelateral surfaces of the light-transmissive members 20, and a secondmember 40 disposed so as to surround the outer periphery of the lightemitting elements 11, 12, 13. In other words, the light-transmissivemember according to Embodiment 2 includes a plurality of sections (i.e.,a plurality of light-transmissive members 20 in FIGS. 4 and 5)corresponding to the light emitting elements 11, 12, 13 so that each ofthe sections of the light-transmissive member is respectively providedon the upper surface of a corresponding one of the light emittingelements 11, 12, 13. Each of the light emitting elements 11, 12, 13 hasa pair of electrodes on its lower surface, and the lower surfaces ofthese electrodes are exposed from the second member 40 to make anelectrical connection with the outside of the light emitting device. Thelight emitting device 200 according to Embodiment 2 differs from thelight emitting device 100 in Embodiment 1 in that it includes aplurality of light-transmissive members 20, and the first member 30 isprovided so as to surround the outer periphery of the light-transmissivemembers 20.

With the light emitting device according to Embodiment 2, as with thelight emitting device according to Embodiment 1, light absorptionbetween adjacent light emitting elements can be reduced, so the lightemitting device can have high light extraction efficiency. Furthermore,with the light emitting device 200 according to Embodiment 2, since thefirst member 30 is disposed between a plurality of light-transmissivemembers, when the light emitting elements are lit individually, theleakage of light between adjacent light-transmissive members can bereduced at the light output surface of the light emitting device 200.With this arrangement, when the light emitting device 200 is used forthe pixels of an image display device, for example, an image displaydevice can be obtained in which there is a clear and precise stepbetween the emitting and non-emitting regions. Also, with the lightemitting device 200 according to Embodiment 2, the light emittingelements are disposed so that each is adjacent to two other lightemitting elements. This is preferable because it affords better colormixing when a plurality of light emitting elements is lit at the sametime, for example.

Light Emitting Device According to Embodiment 3

The light emitting device 300 according to Embodiment 3 shown in FIG. 6includes a plurality of light emitting elements 11, 12, 13 withdifferent emission wavelengths respectively, a light-transmissive member20 that is disposed on the upper surfaces of these light emittingelements 11, 12, 13, a first member 30 disposed on the lateral surfacesof the light-transmissive member 20, and a second member 40 disposed soas to surround the outer periphery of the light emitting elements 11,12, 13. Each of the light emitting elements 11, 12, 13 has a pair ofelectrodes on its lower surface, and the lower surfaces of theseelectrodes are exposed from the second member 40 to make an electricalconnection with the outside of the light emitting device. In the lightemitting device 300 according to Embodiment 3, the light-transmissivemember and the light emitting elements are fixed without the use of anadhesive material. Also, parts of the light emitting elements areembedded in the light-transmissive member. In other words, thelight-transmissive member comprises a plurality of recesses on its lowersurface, and the light emitting elements are accommodated in theserecesses.

With the light emitting device according to Embodiment 3, as with thelight emitting device according to Embodiment 1, light absorption may bereduced between adjacent light emitting elements, so the light emittingdevice can have high light extraction efficiency. Furthermore, sincepart of the lateral surfaces of the light emitting element is embeddedin the light-transmissive member 20 with the light emitting deviceaccording to Embodiment 3, light emits from the lateral surfaces of thelight emitting elements can be guided directly to the light-transmissivemember 20, which is preferable.

Manufacturing Method of Light Emitting Device According to Embodiments

An embodiment of a manufacturing method of the light emitting deviceaccording to the certain embodiments will be described.

(1) Preparation of First Member and Disposition of Light-transmissiveMember

A first member having through-holes is disposed on a support membercomposed of a heat-resistant sheet. The through-holes pass through afirst surface of the first member and a second surface that is on therear side of the first surface. Just one through-hole may be formed inthe first member, or two or more may be formed. The size and shape ofthe inner surface of the through-hole in plan view may be substantiallythe same as the external size and shape of the light-transmissive memberin the light emitting device 100.

The through-hole may be formed by any method. Examples includeirradiation or scribing with laser light, punching, etching, andblasting. Also, a first member having a through-hole may be formed byinjection molding, transfer molding, or compression molding using amolding die. Using a molding die can reduce variance in the shape of thefirst member having the through-holes.

Next, a light-transmissive resin is disposed inside the through-hole. Alight-transmissive resin, for example, can be used as the material ofthe light-transmissive member. In disposing the light-transmissiveresin, any method may be used, example of which include printing andpotting. The light-transmissive resin may contain a light diffusingmaterial or another such filler.

(2) Fixing of Light Emitting Elements

The light-transmissive member and the upper surfaces of the lightemitting elements are bonded preferably by bonding method. The adhesivematerial is preferably provided not only to the upper surfaces of thelight emitting elements, but also to the lateral surfaces of the lightemitting elements to increase the bonding strength between the lightemitting elements and the light-transmissive member.

In the case that the light-transmissive member itself has adhesiveproperties, such as when the light-transmissive member contains a resinmaterial and the resin material is in a semi-cured state, etc., thelight emitting elements and the light-transmissive member can be fixedwithout the use of an adhesive material. In this case, part of thelateral surfaces of the light emitting elements may be embedded in thelight-transmissive member during fixing. This is preferable because itmay improve the bonding strength between the light emitting elements andthe light-transmissive member.

In the case that the light emitting elements with different emissionwavelengths have different height from others, the depth at which theelements are embedded in the light-transmissive member can be varied sothat the height from the upper surface of the light-transmissive memberto the lower surfaces of the light emitting elements (that is, thesurfaces on which the electrodes are formed) may substantially the samefor all the light emitting elements.

(3) Disposition of Second Member

The second member is disposed so as to surround the outer periphery ofthe light emitting elements. The second member covers all of the lateralsurfaces of the plurality of light emitting elements. When an adhesivematerial is used to bond the light emitting elements and thelight-transmissive member, the second member covers the adhesivematerial disposed on the lateral surfaces of the light emittingelements. Furthermore, a portion of the lower surfaces of the lightemitting elements, where the pair of electrodes does not cover, is alsocovered by the second member. The thickness of the second member heremay be adjusted so that part of the lateral surfaces of the electrodesis exposed from the second member. When the upper surface of the firstmember is used as a reference, the height to the surface of the secondmember on the opposite side from the surface that faces the first membermay be set to be less than or equal to the height of the exposedsurfaces of the electrodes.

Also, the pair of the electrodes may be exposed from the second memberby forming the second member which has a thickness sufficient tocompletely embed the pair of electrodes and removing the part of thesecond member to expose the electrodes. The second member may be removedby any method that is known in this field. Examples of removing processinclude etching, cutting, grinding, polishing, and blasting. Removingthe second member by etching, cutting, grinding, polishing, blasting, orthe like is preferable because it leaves the surface of the secondmember smooth, and this surface will be the lower surface of the lightemitting device.

(4) Separating into Individual Light Emitting Devices

A cut is made between adjacent light-transmissive members to separatethe first member, the second member, and the support member and obtainindividual units. The support members are removed from these units toobtain individual light emitting devices. During cutting, it ispreferable not to cut the support members all the way through. Thisallows the support members to be removed all at once. Alternatively, thesupport member may be removed prior to cutting.

The embodiments according to the present invention have beenspecifically explained based on the embodiments above, but the spirit ofthe present invention should be broadly interpreted based on the scopeof claims without limitation to those described above.

What is claimed is:
 1. A light emitting device comprising: a pluralityof light emitting elements each having a pair of electrodes on a lowersurface thereof; a light-transmissive member disposed on an uppersurface of each of the light emitting elements to transmit light fromthe light emitting elements; a first member disposed on one or morelateral surfaces of the light-transmissive member, and constituting partof an upper surface of the light emitting device; and a second membersurrounding an outer periphery of each of the light emitting elements,and constituting part of a lower surface of the light emitting device,wherein lower surfaces of the electrodes are exposed from the secondmember.
 2. The light emitting device according to claim 1, wherein thelight-transmissive member includes a plurality of sections correspondingto the light emitting elements so that each of the sections of thelight-transmissive member is respectively provided on the upper surfaceof a corresponding one of the light emitting elements.
 3. The lightemitting device according to claim 1, wherein the second member issofter than the first member.
 4. The light emitting device according toclaim 1, wherein the second member has a reflectivity higher than thatof the first member.
 5. The light emitting device according to claim 1,wherein the first member constitutes part of lateral surfaces of thelight emitting device.
 6. The light emitting device according to claim1, wherein the second member constitutes part of lateral surfaces of thelight emitting device.
 7. The light emitting device according to claim1, wherein the upper surface of each of the light emitting elements anda lower surface of the light-transmissive member are joined with anadhesive material.
 8. The light emitting device according to claim 7,wherein the adhesive material covers part of lateral surfaces of thelight emitting elements.
 9. The light emitting device according to claim8, wherein the second member covers outer surfaces of the adhesivematerial and part of the lateral surfaces of the light emitting elementsthat is exposed from the adhesive material.
 10. The light emittingdevice according to claim 8, wherein an outer surface of the adhesivematerial is inclined outwardly from a lower surface side toward an uppersurface side of each of the light emitting elements.
 11. The lightemitting device according to claim 1, wherein the light-transmissivemember includes a lower surface on which one or more grooves are formedbetween the light emitting elements.
 12. The light emitting deviceaccording to claim 1, wherein the light emitting elements include afirst light emitting element that emits red light, a second lightemitting element that emits green light, and a third light emittingelement that emits blue light.
 13. The light emitting device accordingto claim I, wherein the first member is made of a resin containing alight absorbing substance.
 14. The light emitting device according toclaim 1, wherein the second member is made of a resin containing a lightreflecting substance.
 15. The light emitting device according to claim1, wherein the first member is made of an epoxy resin.
 16. The lightemitting device according to claim 1, wherein the second member is madeof a silicone resin.
 17. The light emitting device according to claim 1,wherein the first member and the second member are in contact at lateralsurfaces of the light emitting device.
 18. The light emitting deviceaccording to claim I, wherein a height of at least one of the electrodesof the light emitting elements is at least 20 μm.